You have the hottest online concept around, and you're ready
to sell your wares and services from your very own dotcom domain.
You have a brilliant business plan and a bright crew. All you need
now is a home for your team. But are landlords at all wary of
leasing office space to dotcom companies?

As with any start-up, landlords will want to see your business
plan, according to Moskowitz. But, unlike traditional start-ups,
dotcoms tend to grow very quickly. Just ask David Liu, CEO of
TheKnot.com, an online wedding emporium, whose company went from 28
employees to over 200 in about a year. "If you sign a
long-term lease on a small space and outgrow it, you're
stuck," he says. Add that to the fact that e-commerce tenants
need state-of-the-art telecommunications and electrical systems,
and Net--preneurs have some hard requirements to be met.

Meanwhile, some build-ing developers are actually designing
properties with high-tech start-ups in mind. Leggat McCall Properties
is developing a building in Philadelphia where the first floor is
fully wired and made with lower cost buildouts to facilitate
growth. "Tenants were continually telling us about their
shorter business planning cycles and need for more
flexibility," says Leggat executive vice president of
development Eric Sheffels.

Even if you're dealing with more traditional landlords, you
can increase your chances of getting a good space. Get a letter of
credit from banks or references from your venture capitalists.
Landlords may also accept a smaller security deposit in return for
stock warrants in your company. "If [the dotcom] makes
it," says Sheffels, "we'll be compensated for the
risk we took on them."